


Dead and Missing

by Cornflower_Blue



Series: Eragon Story Snippets [2]
Category: The Inheritance Cycle - Christopher Paolini
Genre: Alternate Scene, Brom (mentioned) - Freeform, Emotional Hurt, Eragon (mentioned), Extra Scene, Gen, No editing we publish like men, Roran POV, Scene originally not included in text, There are some other minor characters in there as well, written at 2 am
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-01-03
Packaged: 2019-10-03 12:24:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17284031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cornflower_Blue/pseuds/Cornflower_Blue
Summary: Roran had been looking forward to the job at the mill. This was going to be the start of his new life and he could practically feel the potential unfolding as he and Dempton started off to TherinsfordHis optimism lasted all of five days.Roran gets the news that Garrow is dead and Eragon is missing.





	Dead and Missing

Roran had been looking forward to the job at the mill. This was going to be the start of his new life and he could practically feel the potential unfolding as he and Dempton started off to Therinsford

His optimism lasted all of five days.

He had been suppressed to see Albriech and Baldor ride up to the mill.

He had been devastated by the news they had brought. His home had been destroyed, his father lay dying in Carvahall, and Eragon had been hurt badly enough that he had been unconscious for two days.

Roran has wanted to ride out the second they were finished explaining themselves. He had to go back now, he had to see his family.

But the horses had been in no shape to go anywhere and Albriech and Baldor had been exhausted. So Roran had been forced to wait.

He resented those hours now.

He had jumped off the horse as soon as he could and sprinted the last few feet to the blacksmith’s house and pounded on the door till Elain had opened the door.

“Roran! We didn’t think we’d see you till later today!”

“Where’s Garrow?” Roran has been too panicked to deal in pleasantries, he had to see his father as soon as possible. Then once he was had seen Garrow and assessed his condition, he was going to locate Eragon and make sure he was safe too.

“Oh Roran, I’m so sorry, he died in the night,” Elain said and Roran’s world shattered. She placed a hand on his shoulder as Roran struggled to keep upright.

How could this have happened? His father might not have been in the prime of his life anymore, but to have gone from living to death in six days. He just, he just could not understand it.

“I- I don’t- what- but how?” Roran knee he was making no sense, but he did not know how to formulate what he wanted to say into words.

Thankfully, Elain understood what he needed, “Come on inside.”

Roran was led into their kitchen, then farther into the house. He kept his head down and followed where Elain led him. Thoughts and half formed questions tripped over themselves in his mind.

After aperitif if time that seemed to have stretched on for forever and yet was entirely too short, Roran was led into a room, and there, stretched out on the bed with a sheet covering most of his body, was Garrow.

Roran stumbled to the chair next to the bed. He barely made it before huge, wracking sobs tore through his body. It felt like the sadness was trying to rip its way out of his body, like at any second he would collapse into a shadow of who he used to be and all that would be left of him would be his tears.

Time passed irregularly as he sat by Garrow’s side. At some point he stopped crying, but that was worse. The not crying made him feel empty inside, it had all been drained from him.

After a while, he could not sit there anymore, the empty feeling inside was threading to consume him whole. So he forced himself to get up and walk find Elain.

She was in the kitchen when he found her, she looked up from the dough she was kneading as he walked in.

“Where’s Eragon?” Roran asked. Eragon should be here. Should know that Roran was here. Should know that he was not alone. And Roran had to see how hurt he was.

Elain looked at him, stricken and Roran wanted to stop her before she even began talking. He did not want to hear what she was going to say. Had he not endured enough already today? He had lost his father, would the gods really be so cruel as to take the person who had been his brother in every aspect except blood from him too?

“We don’t know, I’m so sorry.”

The words made no sense. 

Individually he knew each word, and even together he understood them. But in this context, they just did not make sense.

“What do you mean you don’t know where he his?” Roran’s voice was oddly calm, collected almost. There was no hint at the whirlwind inside.

“He disappeared earlier today, Horst has been looking for him all day.”

Roran did not know when exactly he had stood up and started moving, only that he was halfway across the kitchen before he registered he was moving. 

He had to go out and find Eragon. He knew hos cousin best. He would go out and find Eragon out there somewhere and they would mourn together as they should. He would even go into the Spine if he had to. He would find Eragon.

He was just reaching out for the door when it swung open to reveal Horst. Roran came to a quick stop. Then tried to see if Eragon was behind him, surely Horst had come home because he had found Eragon.

“Roran,” the way Horst said his name demanded his attention.

“I’m sorry.” No, no Eragon was not dead, he was not gone. Not him too.

Roran was so wrapped up in his mounting tornado of grief and denial, the two earring with each other inside him, that he almost missed the paper Horst was holding out to him.

Roran took the paper and looked at it desperately, hoping for some kind of lifeline, but it’s covered in strange runes and Roran is at a loss.

“What’s this?” He asks, his vice breaking on the question.

“It’s a note,” Gertrude said, stepping out from behind Horst, “we found it at Brom’s”

“I don’t- I can’t read,” Roran said, looking at her helplessly. He did not understand why they had given him a note from Brom, but it had to be important he did  _ not know what it said.  _ He did not know how to decipher it or pull its meaning from it.

“Here, I’ll read it for you,” Gertrude said, holding her hand out for the note.

Roran practically shoved it into her hands, desperate for answers.

“Roran, I’m sorry, I can’t explain much. The people who killed your father are after Eragon for something he has. He cannot stay here, his life is in too much danger and he would put everyone in Carvahall in danger if he stayed. So he and I are leaving. I’ll do my best to keep him safe. Brom.”

After she was finished, Gertrude handed the letter back to him. Roran took it back with numb fingers.

Gone, Eragon’s was gone. And he had chosen to leave.

“We have to go after them,” Roran stated it as if it was the obvious next step, and as soon as he said it, it seemed clear to him. He would go after his cousin and drag him back to Carvahall. He could not go running of with Brom the storyteller. 

“We can’t” Horst’s answer was stated just as matter of factly.

“We have to find him,” Roran could feel himself coming apart at the seams.

“We don’t know where they went.” Horst was still calm and collected.

“We have to try.” Roran did not understand how anyone could feel stable, his whole world was falling apart.

“You have to bury your father Roran.”

“He should be here!”

“I know,” Horst’s voice was soft as he put his hand on Roran’s shoulder.

“I know,” he repeated as Roran felt tears start streaming down his face. He had thought he had cried out all the moisture in his body, but it seemed he had more still left in him.

“It’s unbelievably unfair to ask you to bury your own father with no other family to help you, but you must do so Roran,” Horst said.

Roran shook his head fervently, but he knew deep down that he was right. He had to bury Garrow, he  _ had  _ to. His father deserved a proper burial. He could not go after his cousin.

No matter how desperately he wanted to run as far and as fast as he could away from Carvahall, away from the tragedy that was sleeping into his being, Eragon had stolen that opportunity from him the second he had decided to leave with Brom. 

And now Roran was stuck.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again!!! It’s finally up!!!
> 
> This was honestly a lot longer than it was supposed to be, and I cut out the original idea that started the extra scenes idea in the first place, which was Roran freaking out about the fact that he no longer has the rock Eragon gave him. But it just didn’t flow with the rest of the story, so it had to go. I mighty write it eventually, but for now I’m looking for new extra scenes to write!!!
> 
> That being said, I hope you liked the story!!! Let me know what you think!!!


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